GOP lawmaker: I didn’t agree to marry Grover Norquist forever

Rep. Mike Simpson (R-ID) is one of 40 House Republicans who say that increased revenues must be part of the Super Committee deal to reduce the nation’s debt.

Those Republicans joined 60 House Democrats in signing a letter calling on the Super Committee to “go big” and cut $4 trillion instead of instead of the $1.5 trillion they are aiming for.

“Will you support more revenues?” Fox News host Mike Wallace asked Simpson Sunday. “Either from raising tax rates or cutting deductions as a part of the plan to cut the deficit?”

“You have to,” Simpson declared. “The reality is you can’t get to $4 trillion without including additional revenue. We might have different ideas about what those revenues will look like. I think you could get additional revenues by actually lowering the tax rates and eliminating all of the exemptions underneath and that type of thing. And I think you’d have an economic boom in this country and the revenue would come in to the federal government. So, more revenue is key to this.”

“Grover Norquist, a name with which I’m sure you’re familiar, the head of Americans for Tax Reform, has a pledge that you and all but six House Republicans have signed to oppose any net increases in taxes — exactly the opposite of what you just said to me,” Wallace noted. “How many House Republicans do you think will follow you, are willing to break their pledge and, quite frankly, put their political futures at risk to make this deal?”

“I signed that in 1998 when I first ran,” Simpson recalled. “I didn’t know I was signing a marriage agreement that would last forever and I think the majority of members of Congress that you have to have additional revenue.”

About the Author

David Edwards has served as an editor at Raw Story since 2006. His work can also be found at Crooks & Liars, and he's also been published at The BRAD BLOG. He came to Raw Story after working as a network manager for the state of North Carolina and as as engineer developing enterprise resource planning software. Follow him on Twitter at @DavidEdwards.